A 28-year-old sugarcane worker named Jason Abria was released after six years of imprisonment on March 6 after the Regional Trial Court 7 Branch 64 in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental dismissed the murder case filed against him. The court issued the decision on February 28.

State forces arrested Abria, a resident of Barangay Luz, Guihulngan City, on April 1, 2019 while working on a sugarfield in Barangay Sibucawan, Isabela, Negros Occidental. He was arrested along with 10 others, and four of them were charged with murdering Jolomar Hilario, a councilor for the town of Moises Padilla, in March 2019.

The four were accused of being New People’s Army (NPA)-Central Negros (Leonardo Panaligan Command) members who allegedly imposed the death penalty on Hilario for serving as a military intelligence asset. Meanwhile, 10 other individuals, including some local politicians, were implicated in the said case.

Human Rights Advocates Negros (HRAN) welcomed the dismissal of the case despite the long wait for Abria’s freedom. His fellow arrested sugarcane workers Raymond Gabitanan, Richard Sarillo and Roel Sarillo are still detained for four additional criminal cases. According to the group, these fabricated cases were filed at the time when the victims were already in detention.

Meanwhile, the implicated politicians had much earlier secured their release after posting bail for their cases.

The court dismissed Abria’s case due to the complainant’s “lack of interest” to further prosecution, which worked in favor to Abria’s lawyers’ motion to dismiss the case.

HRAN continues to call for the release of all political prisoners in the entire Negros Island region, where 110 still imprisoned. They comprise 20% of the national total of political prisoners. Most of the prisoners are detained in Negros Occidental District Jail in Bago City, Negros Occidental, where Abria was imprisoned, and in Guihulngan City District Jail in Negros Oriental.